NEWS

Global military spending fell in 2012 for first time in more than a decade

Global military spending dropped in 2012 for the first time in more than a decade thanks to deep cuts in the United States and Europe which made up for increases in countries such as China and Russia, a leading think-tank said on Monday.

Big powers the United States and its European allies face tight budgets in an economic downturn and have scaled back involvement in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The world’s second biggest economy China, however, is ramping up spending and registered 7.8 percent growth in 2012 from the year before, up 175 percent from 2003.

Military expenditure as a whole fell 0.5 percent to $1.75 trillion last year in the first decline in real terms since 1998, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which carries out research on international security, armaments and disarmament, said in a statement.

“We are seeing what may be the beginning of a shift in the balance of world military spending from the rich Western countries to emerging regions,» said Sam Perlo-Freeman, director of SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme.

Military expenditure in the United States, the world’s biggest spender by far with a budget about five times that of China, fell 6 percent and stood below 40 percent of the global total for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union more than 20 years ago, SIPRI said.

The United States pulled its troops out of Iraq more than a year ago and is winding down its war in Afghanistan under a plan for a pull-out by the end of 2014.

The Pentagon is seeking to cut hundreds of billions of dollars in costs and this month, new Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel warned the U.S. military to brace for a new round of belt-tightening.

In Europe, austerity measures prompted by the financial crisis that started in 2008 have forced NATO members to cut back spending by 10 percent in real terms.

“All the indications are that world military spending is likely to keep falling for the next two to three years — at least until NATO completes its withdrawal from Afghanistan at the end of 2014,» Perlo-Freeman said.

“However, spending in emerging regions will probably go on rising, so the world total will probably bottom out after that.”

Global military spending fell significantly after the Cold War ended, reaching a nadir in the mid-1990s, but picked up pace sharply after the September 11 attacks on the United States.

The global total remains above the Cold War peak.

Greece’s arms imports fell by 61 percent between 2003–2007 and 2008–12. The country fell from the number four importer to number 15.

During the period from 2006 to 2010, Greece was the top recipient of German arms exports and the third largest recipient of French arms exports.

[Reuters & Kathimerini English Edition]

Subscribe to our Newsletters

Enter your information below to receive our weekly newsletters with the latest insights, opinion pieces and current events straight to your inbox.

By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.